Etymology

This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.
Particularly: “The original meaning is quite transparently "to obey, to follow". The Nôm characters all have 邦 (MC paewng) (SV: bang) as phonetic, so the current ‹v-› is the result of lenition. Based on the character 𢀥 (巨 (MC gjoX) + 邦 (MC paewng)), it might be tempting to reconstruct the onset *k-p-.”

A cognate is found in Eastern Cham peng (“to obey”) (Shin'e & Sakaya, 2014), which might be a rather late Vietnamese loan as suggested by its monosyllabic shape.

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [vəŋ˧˧]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [vəŋ˧˧]
(Saigon) IPA^(key): [vəŋ˧˧] ~ [jəŋ˧˧]
Audio (Saigon): (file)

Verb

vâng • (𠳐, 𢀥, 邦)

to obey (other's words, commands); to listen to; to comply with
vâng lệnh ― to obey a command

See also

Interjection

vâng

(Northern Vietnam, polite) yes

See also

dạ